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Digital Image – The Whirlpool Galaxy

In my repeated attempts to improve my “best” image of this gorgeous spiral, I am slowly getting there. This was taken while I was enjoying the company of my friend Mike Barrett and his brother last night. Although there seemed to be some Declination drift going on during the subframe exposures, the final image came out pretty good. Once I further improve my polar alignment, I should be able to get an even better shot.

Image Info:

Canon 60 D with an Astronomic CLS LPR filter, at the prime focus of the 18″ KPO Reflector. 28 subframes of 180 seconds each yielded a total integration time of 84 minutes. All frames were shot as ISO 1600. Captured and stacked in Nebulosity, processed in StarTools, and finished in Aperture.